The Village Lodge, Coron, Palawan

hotel1

Finding a hotel in the town of Coron was not easy. A few internet searches yielded a couple of names with minimal descriptions. There were more choices if one wanted to stay at a dive resort in the nearby islands. But I wanted to have a base in Coron from which hotel2to easily move around from and so that I could explore the town and market as well. I knew beforehand that this would be a relatively “roughing it” trip, and as long as expectations were set at the right level, things could go very well. Before I describe our accommodations in Coron, I should say that I have been to Palawan several times before, thrice to Amanpulo and once to El Nido. But these luxury resorts, as wonderful and highly recommended as they are, do not include a substantial “local experience.” I knew Coron and Culion would be different. At any rate, I took a chance and blindly booked a room at The Village Lodge, a converted home located on a main road in the town of Coron. Finding their number was a pain in the neck and I finally got through by chance to the owner of the hotel who now resides in Manila and for whom I found a cellphone number somewhere on the internet…

The Village Lodge is in town, not on the water, and it is a converted home that hotel3now has a total of 18 rooms ranging from PHP550 for a single to PHP850 for a double with aircon and television. They also have a duplex apartment for PHP1,800 a day that could easily sleep 6 persons. The lodge is basic, with foam beds, foam pillows and small but very decent, clean airconditioned rooms, some with cable. Our room was in the new wing across the street from the main hotel and it came with a nice bathroom though the bathroom had a foul smell, probably from bad drainage design in their plumbing (p-traps). They had individual water heaters but forget about a real hot shower…lukewarm trickle is probably a more apt description. There was lots of unheated water, however. At PHP800 a night or PHP400 per person, I thought The Village Lodge offered terrific value…

A 5-8 minute walk to the market and town center, this was the perfect choice for us. Their kitchen churned out a competent set of Filipino dishes and the cook Henry, was extremely accommodating about our bringing home seafood for him to cook. Dennis, the waiter and other staff Anna, etc. were friendly, attentive and helpful. The hotel is located right next hotel4door to the current Mayor’s home, it has a small shop and there is an internet café close by. They have a nice bar upstairs and a restaurant on a balcony. If you want to enquire about The Village Lodge, text or call Anna at 0910-571-7865 or Kaye at 0920-4118861 and tell them Marketman sent you. Great value for money, pleasant staff and a good location if you want to stay in the town of Coron. Oh, I almost forgot, when you tire of seafood, order their nilangang baka or bulalo…it was terrific…the airport, after all, is located on one of the largest cattle farms in the region, I am told… And no, I am not related to the owners of the hotel in any way, nor do I receive a commission. :)

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Marketman

Marketman is a well-traveled management consultant who loves buying, cooking and eating good food. Read more »

119 Responses

  1. I remember Village Lodge in Coron, it’s near Darayonan. :) That time, it was occupied by Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales.

    I enjoyed reading your series of posts about Palawan, it’s where my grandmother grew up. Reminds me of the stories she used to tell me.

  2. You took a lot of chances in booking your hotel but glad everything went well. Whatever plumbing problems they had it was compensated by attentive and friendly staffs and very affordable accommodation. Nice location surrounded by locals and the markets. Wherever I travel, I take with me my precious pillow. I cannot sleep without my home pillow.

  3. what did you get for desserts in coron marketman?
    just curious.

    your posts have convinced me now more than ever to fly myself to coron ASAP.

  4. bambooshootjr, funny you should ask, I don’t think we had a single dessert in the four days we were in Coron! No cakes, baked stuff, cookies, ice cream, etc. I think we were so full from the main meals we didn’t even bother to check out the sweets! Come to think of it, we didn’t even have much fruit either… Crissy, you are right, The Village Lodge is right beside Darayonan… Maria Clara, if I brought my own pillow I would have been much happier… :)

  5. Wow, no time to think of dessert and baked goods? Pefect for the South Beach Diet!…Now if I could only cut out the steaming rice that goes perfectly with the steamed lobsters, shrimps, talakitok sinigang, etc!

  6. Hi MM! At last the hotel was revealed…looks like value for money. But hmmm…I think I might be better off in a resort right on the beach since I will be bringing my children. Sadly, there’s a dearth of resorts or hotels in Coron.

  7. the dessert i remember in Coron is “bandi” or “bande”, the cashew brittle that is shaped like discs.

  8. Hi MM,

    thanks for sharing the info about your accomodations. On my next trip to Coron we will try them out. I think it might be way better than the ones “on-the-water” like you mentioned. because there is no beach along the Coron town proper and the water smells.. I stayed in one of the accomodations near the water which I think is not as nice as the village lodge. thanks for the info.

    Elnido town is nice too. I been there twice once in Lagen then another shoestring budget we stayed in town– both are great experience. Ok naman mag stay sa town :) you can still enjoy the islands via boat trips just like the resort guest.

    next trip I will be bringing my baby and hubby.

  9. If I may add another thing…since a lot of Filipino food has sourness as a flavor profile, maybe you can “invent” the scoville equivalent for degrees of sourness. You can call it something like the “ASIMMM” (Acidic Source Index – MarketMan Metric)…that way you give the reader an idea of the level of sourness needed to pair with a particular piece of meat, fish or vegetable in your recipes.

  10. Oops, sorry I posted under the wrong topic. This should go on the topic of you’re writing a book.

  12. hi Marketmat, your article and site is very informative. Im soon to get married and we have reservation at ClubParadise for our honeymoon. We will extend our stay but at Kokosnuss for cheaper accomodation and tours/trips. Would you recommend for us to stay at Village Lodge instead? Thanks, thanks!

  13. Nordinords, moving from Club Paradise to town will be a big step DOWN… :) I didn’t go into Kokosnuss so I wouldn’t be a good judge of that hotel, though the exterior if I remember correctly harked of more native materials in use…and on the main road as well. You may want to stay there one night and check out the other lodges/hotels so you can make an informed choice… I was pleased with the value for money exchange at the Village Lodge… Club Paradise was asking 20x as much a night for a room! Have a great wedding!

  14. hello,

    would like to ask some assistance…will be going to palawan this coming june but in puerto princesa.anybody familiar with the place?me and my boyfriend are really looking for a nice and affordable place to stay and also seeking help for the tour. we’re not so familiar though we’re hooking up the net to check some places. could anybody recommend a place?and also a beach resort nearer where we can just stay the whole day?

    thank you so much

  16. hi :)

    how much would a tricycle ride be from village lodge to the pier where the boats are (and where seadive is)? just so i know that they are not excessively charging us =)

    and have you been to other islands such as banana island, malcapuya island, etc with mang fredo? just wanna know around how much he would charge to bring you to these islands.

    thanks!

  17. jo, you can actually do the lodge to pier in a nice 7-8 minute walk. But if you use a tricycle, it was just a few pesos per person. We also hired a tricycle from the lodge to the Makinit Hot Springs and that was PHP200 with an hour wait and the tricycle was just for us. Malcapuya is supposed to be spectacular but it was just too far on the map for me who isn’t great with boats. I never got the feeling the locals were taking me or trying to take me for a “ride.” Just give the hotel and boatman a call and negotiate reasonably… we hired the banca for two days and I was with a local remember, so we may have gotten a bit of special treatment…

  18. For Yvonne…

    A nice affordable place to stay in PP is Casa Linda Inn – it’s not far from the airport and is just off the main road. Rooms are somewhere between 500 and 800 pesos per night. I was last there about 18 months ago and it was a nice peaceful place in a courtyard style with gardens. Staff were very helpful. Make sure you eat at KaLui which is 5 mins walk up the road. It surely is THE best place to eat on Palawan, has good value seafood (crab, shrimps, seaweeds etc) and is chock full of interesting interior design ideas.

    Beaches are not so great immediately around PP. Most people seem to go further afield on day trips to Honda Bay where there are island hopping trips. Honda Bay is approx 15km away from PP. Casa Linda, or any of the guest houses in the city, will help you arrange a visit there.

    Hope this helps.

  19. To anybody here….My hubby doesn’t trust the small planes of Asian Spirit nor the other airlines. He said they are old and may encounter problem. The other choice to go to Coron is via Superferry. Is it really scary to take those planes? I know they are noisy being turboprop but it’s the fastest and most convenient way to go to Coron.

  20. for corrrine_p
    My wife and I took the Asian Spirit plane from Manila to Coron in January 2006 and we liked it very much. About 20 seats including the pilots. We had a great flight.
    No problems at all. Pilot and his co were pro’s. Plane was in very good condition. We will take it again next February to go to Coron again. Tell your hubby I said “no problem”, not scary at all. Have a nice trip. No matter what you finally choose.

  21. corrrine, the record of SEAIR is pretty good, and Asian Spirit has NEW planes plying the Busuanga route, so I would say they are much better than your husband expects. Considering that the Super Ferry recently had engine trouble and drifted out to the South China Sea, I suspect flying is a good alternative…

  24. Dear Marketman, I appreciate very very much your putting Coron Village Lodge in your website and your very good comments. I invite everyone to come to Coron, stay at Village Lode where I emphasize to my staff, cleanliness, friendly and good service and good food. I love Coron , my hometown, and would like people to love it, too. It is a little paradise. I went up Lake Barracuda for the first time last week (I’m 69 years old!). It is a most amazing, enchanting, breathtaking, tranquil (more adjectives needed here!) place! Visit it if you haven’t. They have placed a wooden railing to hold on to as you go up the cliff.

  25. Bec, you are welcome. We did enjoy our stay at your lodge and if I can manage in the years ahead, I would love to return to Coron. I hope this post and the several others I did regarding Coron (check around these dates in the archives for 8-10 different Palawan posts) do encourage more tourists to visit that beautiful part of the country… again, many thanks…

  26. hello, I stayed at the Village Lodge this summer and it as such a great experience that we promised the owner and the staff to send them our pictures. However, I lost the brochure with their e-mail (something along the lines of villagelodge@hotmail.com)- Would you happen to have it ?

    Thanks so much for your help !

  27. Dear Mr. Marketman,

    It was a pleasure to personally meet you. Thank you for staying again in Coron Village Lodge. I hope you were comfortable enough despite the construction above your room. I wish I could given a better room. Will make it up to you nest time.

    Thank you so much for the mangosteen jam. It is superb — beats all other jams. The seeds are nutty, taste like whole almonds! Really, really good.

  28. It was a pleasure to personally meet you. Thank you for staying again in Coron Village Lodge. I hope you were comfortable enough despite the construction above your room. I wish I could given you a better room. Will make it up to you next time.

    Thank you so much for the mangosteen jam. It is superb — beats all other jams. The seeds are nutty, taste like whole almonds! Really, really good.

    February 8th, 2008

  29. i am going to coron in july. arriving on friday early morning via negros navigation 18jul and returning to mnl via super ferry 20jul. just want to check on rates. i will be with my 9 year old daughter and my wife. we also would like to get some idea on rates for room, kayaking, island hopping and horseback riding. appreciate your reply.
    regards,
    joe

  30. Hi! This is really helpful. =) Please please please… if you do have a contact number of The Village Lodge, please post. :) I have been googling since Saturday because I saw Village Lodge through this website but I cant seem to find how to book with them…
    Please help. =)

  31. Myla, maybe if you bothered to READ the post above you would find the two contact numbers given for The Village Lodge instead of firing off a comment straight away…

  32. hi Mr. Marketman. can i have the contact number of village lodge. my family and i want to go their this coming week. thanks please reply asap…

  33. Jasmine, I am being a bit rude, but DID you BOTHER to read the post above??? It has the contact numbers. Some effort exerted on your part before asking someone else for obvious information would be nice.

  34. Hi MM,

    just wondering how did you get to The Village Lodge from airport? Did you took Manila to Busuanga flight?

    Thanks

  35. Princess, if you take Seair, they have a jeepney from the airport to town and will drop you at The village Lodge as well. If you take other airlines, I am sure you can take a jeepney too. It was PHP150 each from airport to town, a 45+ minute drive.

  36. Thanks much….. This is helpful. My family is staying at Village Lodge in July…thanks also for providing the mobile number of the boatman.

    back to lechon sisig now :-)

  37. Hi Marketman, my apologies. I was too excited by the first part of the post and went ahead and posted the question. Nevertheless, I would still say that this is helpful.Thank you again.

  38. hi marketman,
    if i will stay in village lodge how can i get to the airport going back to manila since most of the flights are early morning. are there cabs in the area?

  40. Hi, Marketman!

    Before anything else, Philippine Airlines now flies daily to Busuanga utilizing their new quiet turbo prop 50-seater Bombardier. There is a special promo for flights between Jul 01 and October 15, 2008. Buy One Take One Free Domestic Ticket Absolutely Free!

    My family first went to Coron in 1994 and terribly enjoyed it. We stayed at Club Paradise and were very pleased with the experience. We even took a side tour of Calauit.

    Now that Philippine Airlines has resumed it operations to Coron, we are planning to go back with other members of the family. I agree with you that the resort experience is very different from the “town experience” and we would like to do it this way this time.

    I would definitely check out The Village Lodge! Thanks for posting it in the web.

  41. Hi!! Myla & Jasmine u can also contact this # 09106689375 for inquiries about VILLAGE LODGE.

  42. i love your site and all that post it in – it’s very informative! question about your trips to Amanpulo – is there a cheaper way to get into “town” besides the expensive island tour? we would like to explore beyond amanpulo but have not clue as to how to do it. any advice??

    thanks!

  43. MJ, once you are on Amanpulo, you are “at their mercy…” in a sense, as they control the entire island and anyone who comes onto it. They can arrange private boats, bancas, helicopters, planes, you name it to explore beyond Amanpulo. If you are prepared to shell out the $600-800 a night for the room, the cost of a tour to the nearby islands is inconsequential. I have been there where neighbors have hired private planes to bring them on a day of island viewing, landing in different cities for meals and returning to the island…

  44. hi marketman,
    thanks for the info on coron village lodge. i have already spoken with anna on reservation plans (as mentioned above) since my friends and i will be in palawan end of november. Seasoned travelers like you and sites such as this help a lot.

  45. Hi Marketman,

    I really enjoyed your post. Thanks a lot for the info. I’ll be in Coron this Nov 12 to 15 and now I’m torn between Sea Dive Resort and Village Lodge. :( Can anyone give me a good advice? Btw, do you have pictures of Village Lodge’s bedrooms?

    Many thanks!

  46. hi marketman,

    thanks for the info about the village lodge. We are planning to go there early 2009 and i stumbled upon your entry while looking for an inexpensive place to stay.

    BTW, do you have contact infos? like cellphone# or email? I cant find any eh.

    Thanks!

  48. yay!!! i already booked for 4 days 3 nights vacation to Tita Anna!!! weeeeeeeh!!! will be leaving this 21st of Nov.

    thanks MM for the tip!

  49. di pa ako nakakapunta no comment hahahaha ill tell you guys next year hope to visit the good place!!!!!

  50. thanks for the info about village lodge.talk to anna already and booked a room for december 2008.im very excited and already on vacation mode hehehe,I hope its gonna be all worth it.thanks again.

  51. I can’t wait for Nov. 25 because my family and I will visit Coron for a vacation! Thanks to this site, we will also stay in Village Lodge. Hope we’ll have a great memorable experience! :)

    Thanks! Marketman for the tip!

  53. *got the number already*

    thanks Marketman for this posting. This really helped us planning our trip.

  54. Hey guys! I have been trying to find out what number to call or how I can contact the village lodge in Coron, can anyone help me? thanks for your time =)

  56. Hi, I agree with everybody this is very helpful. However, can you add more tips how to have a budget Island Hopping? And how to go to Calauit Island from Village Lodge. Where can I book a boat to Elnido? Thank you so much in advance.

  58. hey guys! i keep on texting the two numbers but nobody seems to reply? should i call? thanks!

  59. My friend and I, are planning for a trip to Coron this May 2009 for wreck diving. We are based here in Singapore and I found from many websites that this Coron Village Lodge got a decent room and superb food with affordable price. I will try the handphone number given above. Also, can someone give us more info. on how to reach this place from the airport or they also arrange transport pick-up?

    Thanks !

  60. Charles, rooms at the Village lodge ran run US$15-20 per night, so at those rates, don’t expect a star, but we found it very good value. From the airport, you take a jeepney or local transport, for PHP150 or $3 a person and its a 45 minute ride into town. If you tell them your hotel, they will drop you off in front of it. Coron town is small, you can’t get lost. Schwul, sorry, I don’t have more updated numbers than those given above.

  61. Thank you Mr. Marketman ! I will sure that this is on my top choice to select. I tried the number given by the way, and both just keep on ringing. I will try it again later. Hope I can get an answer. Thank you for this, your website is really informative.

  62. hello marketman,
    like everyone else, we were greatly impressed by your post. it’s been so helpful. thanks for sharing your experience.
    in addition to the #s given above, we got these #s from somewhere…
    0918-9201517, 09106689375, (632)8053414, 8055965
    we haven’t tried the landline (kept ringing but no answer) but we called the 0918 #. it turned out to be becs fernandez’s # and so happened she was in coron. so maybe that’s why no one answered the landlines?
    we’re looking forward to our stay in village lodge and trip around the islands this feb 16-19.
    thanks so much!!!!

  63. Hi Marketman, I just talked with Ms Bec Fernandez (such a nice lady!) and how grateful she is for marketmanila since most of her clients found Village Lodge through your website. For a generation like her, she is amazed by how powerful the internet is, and how good reviews bring people to their lodge! :) Looking forward to more great reviews (albeit occasionally..!) from you.

  65. my husband, a 2 yr old daughter and i will be going to coron on march.. would you recommend village lodge for children?? or are there any affordable resort there somewhere??

    and we have no idea about the place, so we dont have any itinerary nor any idea on how much to spend on touring around, esp with a baby.. hope you could help me.. tnx..

  66. Lenny, the Village Lodge is in-land, not a beach resort. But it is a modest place with very good value. You can then arrange for bancas to take you beach hopping. Beach resorts might be easier with a child, but far more expensive.

  67. hello, my friends and i are planning to visit a random place this year and coron is on top of the list. i was wondering, what should be in our “things to do list” if we visit coron? we are planning on a 3D 2N vacation. can anybody share their itinerary? btw, thank you so much for the info regarding the lodge. this would greatly cut our expenses.

  68. Hi! I am currently booking with Coron Village after researching on the other resorts. I am bringing my 5 year old. Coron Village has a detailed itinerary that got my Yes!! Do check their site. For Puerto Princesa, we stayed at Skylite Apartelle .. nice, clean and affordable rooms plus great staff! We stayed 4D/3N there and went to Honda Bay, Undergound River and City Tour … good restos and affordable pa. For Coron, I intend to explore the Market and town ‘must-go places’ w/c I will find out there pa. Safari at Calauit is our ultimate destination.. feeling ko Im in South Africa!

  69. Hi! Together with our 2 kids, My husband and I will be going to Coron this May. We intend to stay at the village lodge. Thanks for your inputs, it helps a lot for us to decide which place to stay. By the way, is there a nereby supermarket, or local store where we could buy distilled water. My 2 daughter depends on milk as their food. And its hard if we will bring many bottles of distilled water from Manila to Coron.

  70. Thanks for your very informative posts on Coron, my family had a very enjoyable stay there last Feb 12-16. We met Ms. Bec Fernandez and she shared some interesting stories about you. Mitch, if you are staying in Coron Village Lodge, they have a complimentary distilled water (5 gallon dispenser with cold/hot water) 24/7 in the main house so you do not need to worry about your daughters’ milk preparation.

  71. Hi I read that Village Lodge is just near Darayonan. Exactly hoe near are they from each other? Can someone describe it for me or can you provide more details? Thanks!

  74. Hi! We will be in Busuanga tomorrow, departing mnl at 905am via cebupac and we will stay at coron village lodge. We will just explore the city when we get there, no itinerary yet. We can probably arrange for an island hopping trip and rent a boatman. It’ll be a total adventure. It’s just me and a pal in a strange land. ;)

  75. our family is planning to have our summer vacation in coron , but we are hesistant bec we dont have any idea how much per person will be the budget.

    if i opted to stay in village lodge, how much would i allot per person for a 3d/2n stay? we are 10 in the family. and how about food? how much per meal would it cost..150-200? what is the usual range of island hopping tour arranged with boatmen? can you give me a rough estimate how much per person? thanks a lot for the info!

  76. hi there, this site is incredibly informative especially for those who doesnt have any idea bout the place. ;j me and my gf will be in coron via zestair (asian spirit) on April 9 thurs and booked to leave on sunday via superferry and will be back in manila on monday at 1pm. Could anyone help us make budgeted itinerary for 4 days stay in coron.. I think it would be better to spend most of the time in coron since we love nature and beaches rather in busuanga.. could there be any motorcycle for rent in coron? could anyone give us places where we can stay beaches, kayaking, hotsprings, massages, any adventure will do.. thanks… xxix

  77. Hi MM. we are going to Coron on April. we want to check out the beach and the local scenery and food. any suggestions? (reply thru email would be very much appreciated if it won’t take too much of your time Ãœ )would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

  78. hi – can anyone HELP???????????? ive tried calling inns and lodging houses and they are all booked – paano kaya gagawin namin dun? are there resort or hotel reps that u can find in the airport?

    will be there april 2 – 6 .

    HELP!

  79. try nyo din diy.coron.com

    a very helpful site also.

    village lodge is also recommended on this site.

    me and my gf are also planning a coron trip. diy is very helpful indded.

  80. we had the worst days of our lives in coron village lodge!!!!!! the management, headed by mr. wilot fernandez, is not competent enough to handle the business. Mr. Fernandez should take time to learn more about the business he manages. He must be responsible enough in making critical decisions.I should say that during our stay, mr. fernandez’ decision making was very detrimental to the business’ growth and success. In addition to that, the receptionist was really rude(her name is jenny). Jenny is not eligible for the job as she lacks professionalism and customer service skills. Coron is a very nice place, almost paradise but it could have been a happier experience for all of us if village lodge has taken care of us.

  81. jenny, it would be great if you can be specific about the things that went wrong on your stay, rather than a generality like “decision making very detrimental to the business growth” so that the hotel can correct errors, etc. And usually, when there is a complaint such as this, it would be great if you would leave your real name so that it is easier to identify the guest/stay and circumstances of the stay. It is unfortunate you had a bad experience, but I have to reiterate that we have only had good ones… and at the rates they charge, we felt they were good value to boot.

  82. dear market man
    i ust read this morning all the comments about village lodge….sofar only one i read had a bad commentsit was jenny whoever she was….maybe she needs a five star service hotel or resort…..we will e going there tomorrow via pal with my husband and we would like to stay in your place….i will call right now for my reservation…can you still accomodate us?

  83. william, I am not connected with The Village Lodge, I have merely written a post on them. I have stayed there twice, and at roughly PHP400 per person, our expectations were moderate and well exceeded. Buy fish in the market and ask their cooks to cook it up for you… delicious. They have contact numbers above and latest ones in the comments, I hope you have a good trip…

  84. when we were out to the islands, some guests arrived to the village lodge. mr. fernandez made a decision to remove our things in our room. w/ out permission from us, he opened our room and packed our things and moved them to the other room. it is very clear that this is invasion of privacy. we even talked to him and he replied, “i don’t care, i don’t really care…” if he is a good manager, he could have texted/ called us to inform us that we need to move to a different room.

  85. we don’t need five star hotel accomodation, william. a little respect is what we needed that time.

  86. for the record, you may go to the coron police station to have this case checked w/ the chief of police.

  87. In line with the comment that “jenny” wrote…here is what happened during our stay there….we had our reservations made here in manila, deposited the required downpayment for the room. In good faith we all knew that everything is ok and when we arrived there in village coron all seems well. We have arranged the room with the front desk named “jenny”…everything went smoothly on our first night but on our second day after having some fun on our “island hopping tour” , one of my friend found out that their things are transferred to our place (which is the apartment type)…without informing or even asking for a permission of removing their things out of their room…basically it is not a good practise from them and it was really “foul”. There was no advise or any word from the management side. Of course, the action is not permissable, so we went to the police station and filed for a complaint and i commend the chief of police for taking good care of us especially we do not know anybody from coron. Mr. Wilot even offered free dinner for us…but “DINNER!!!!!!!” C’mon!!!!!It really just made us all aggrivated!!!!!!We felt that what the village coron people did was an insult to their place especially that coron is being advertise on the website for a good place to visit. Village coron should not a good place to stay especially if you are planning to enjoy your vacation because it will just ruin your plans…….

  88. elizabeth and jenny, if I am to piece your comments together, I am assuming that you had confirmed reservations and were booked into confirmed rooms. On the second day of your stay, the personal belongings of guests in one room were packed up and moved to the other room, an apartment occupied by other members of the group. I am assuming that you had ongoing reservations for both rooms, rather than one room supposed to be vacated that day at a prescribed time, most hotels say 12 noon or so.

    If this summary above is correct, then yes I personally would find it offensive that personal items of guests in one room were packed up and moved to a related room without the permission of the guests. However, the only possible mitigating situation I can think of, but certainly don’t know for a fact is the case or not, is that one of the rooms was scheduled to be vacated by 12 noon and it wasn’t, therefore hotel staff moved belongings to free up the room.

    At any rate, if I were the guest, and had a confirmed reservation for the room, and I was NOT supposed to leave yet that day, then I too would have been irritated if my things were moved without my knowledge.

  89. Hello Marketman… gud day to you … Thank you so much for all the info’s … theyre very helpful!
    I am going to visit Coron on June 15th .. nd will probably stay in this Place, The Village Lodge …
    I just have one question… is there any possible way to go in Tagbilaran from Busuanga?? Ferry or airplane???? If there is, Can you give me their contact numbers or email add? My familys plan is to stay in Coron from June 15 to 19 .. then go to Bohol …. Thank you so much in advance.. i will wait for ur response.

  90. LermaH, I am not aware of direct flight from Busuanga to Tagbilaran. Your best bet is to find a Busuanga to Cebu connection and then a ferry to Bohol. Or fly busuanga back to manila and then a direct flight to Bohol.

  93. Marketman…..the room was not to be vacated and the room is already arranged and reserved for 4 days….it is only our second day..so they do not have the right to remove things out of the room…

  94. Badly needs help! Off to Coron in 2 weeks. Must make final reservations for accommodation. Weighing between contradicting comments and reviews. I am cautious to make reservations for me and my friends this coming May. However, Mr Marketman I would still seek your advice on either going for a packaged tour or go back pack tripping on our own(like do it yourself tour) we don’t know any locals and haven’t been to palawan before.

    An arranged 3D 2N tour in Coron Village costs 5350/pax inclusive of 6 meals and 2 snacks, all transportation transfers (exc. air fees), resort entrance fees, guide fee
    Island tour:
    Cayangan Lake , Lake Barracuda , Twin Lagoon, Banol or Caliwantay Beach , Siete Pecados, Makinit Hot spring.

    Mt. Tapyas wonderful sunrise panoramic view of the islands.
    Calomboyan Island , Coral Garden , WW II Gunboat for snorkeling.

    No mention of inclusion of fees for bancas, wharf transfers, picnic tables etc would it matter at all? I presumed it would be a considerable amount thinking that the main activity is island hopping, snorkelling. And just how much would the full gear rentals be?

    I noticed no comments have been made for the ‘neighboring resort'(eg Darayonan, etc.) has no one tried their services, I wouldn’t presume- bad service? or is it? Their price for the same 3D 2N is at 5800 but bancas and wharf transfers are included with picnic tables. Which one is still the better choice?

    Do you know lodge or inns we can try if we opted to do the trip on our own? Or it would be impractical and tiring to do this option since we are going to be pressed for time since we already have reserved return flight tickets good for 3 days.

    Pls help! Tnx very much for the informative site.God bless!

  95. jenny and elizabeth, okay, now I understand, I think. Yes, I would be very annoyed if I had confirmed reservations and my stuff was moved around. And yes, other potential guests to the hotel should be aware of this incident. I would go further, however, and ask you to consider writing a comprehensive letter of complaint, stating the facts and asking for an explanation from the owners. If you notice a few comments up, another reader has left the contact numbers of the hotel, including a MOBILE number for Ms. Bec Fernandez. If I am not mistaken, she is the owner of the hotel or at least belongs to the family that owns the hotel, so sending the letter to her would be useful, if only to ensure that you are satsified with their response and to avoid this happening again. Potential guests to The Village Lodge would probably like to know how the hotel has responded to your written complaint. Thanks.

    Nan, I have a bad allergy to packaged tours. I realize they work for some, but I always find that they are a bit less flexible than I would like. If there are many of you, you might want to try going at it on your own. You would need to negotiate for a banca for a DAY and do the typical island or beach lake hopping to kayangan lake, blue lagoon, beaches, etc. The hot springs are accessible by a 20+ minute tricycle ride… carrying 4 it might cost you just PHP25 each, entrance to the spring was another small fee. You can also grab a ride easily to the mountain with a view. I will search my archives for a bangkero or two you can call in advance to determine their rates. Bancas CAN be pricey, several thousand per day, but if you share that with 10-12 persons, it isn’t so bad. And they DO use a lot of gas as the distances are substantial. I will post a link here as soon as I find it.

    The two bangkeros we used:
    1. Emie de Leon (larger banca)
    2. Fredo (smaller banca, Culion based, but does groups from Coron)

    For food, the seafood bounty is incredible. When we were there, we would shop at the nearby market and ask the hotel to cook it up for us for a fee. That worked well. But we weren’t there at the peak summer periods. Darayanon is about 20 feet down the road from Village Lodge, I haven’t stayed there so I couldn’t comment, I think it is older than the Village Lodge. I am sure there are several other places in the area as well. But remember, this is not star material. When we were there, it was roughly PHP400 per person per night double occupancy for an aircon room. That may have risen to PHP500+ by now, but expect PHP500 worth, if you know what I mean. At this stage, the better resorts are on private coves/beaches away from the town of Coron and they might run a couple of hundred dollars for the best suites.

    If you are the adventurous types then I might encourage you to go well informed and try to plot your own trip. If you are the conservative types, then maybe a package is better for you. Personally, I am not that adventurous but we did it ourselves anyway… though with the benefit of locals we knew. I have over 20 posts on Coron and surrounding areas from two trips there, so check the archives carefully. I hope that helps.

  96. che naval. A simple message for you. Your comments have been moderated or deleted because they were either disparaging, or obviously written without the primary intent of clarifying a situation or simply informing. Saying for example that I am related to the hotel owners when I am not is simply irresponsible, uninformed, not factual and basically, a lie. So I could, based on that comment, factually state you are a liar. You simply lose credibility with that unfounded assertation or accusation.. And you bring a black cloud to an incident your friends have been better at clarifying. This is my blog. There are 2,200+ posts in the archives, and many of them are favorable… do you think I have a personal interest in every vegetable, fruit, market, hotel, restaurant I write about? Of course not. From the near histrionic comments you have left over the past two days, it is you that is appearing out of line. At least the comments by Jenny and Elizabeth seek to clarify and inform. Yours are just plain vindictive and threatening in tone and not worthy of publishing, in my opinion. Frankly, if you had acted in that manner in a hotel of mine, I would have asked you to leave, but I wouldn’t have packed your bags and moved them elsewhere, I would have had a staff member stand by your side so you could do it yourself and then escort you off the premises. You aren’t doing your group story any favors with your deleted comments.

  97. Dear Mr. Marketman,

    This is about the group of a certain Jenny that published unfavorable blogs on 21-22 April, 2009.

    The group of this Jenny, stayed at Coron Village Lodge for three nights. When they booked they were informed that there were no available rooms adjacent to each other and some might even be transferring from room to room daily. Well, they booked. When they arrived, only Jenny, our front desk trainee, was at the desk. The group insisted that they be placed in rooms near each other so Jenny, feeling very harassed, gave them Rm14 which was for another guest on the next day. I arrived from a trip that afternoon and talked with Badz, the girl who booked the group’s rooms, and another member of their group and explained that they have to vacate Rm14 the next day and be transferred to another room. The next morning, they left for an outing w/o vacating the room. The guest who booked the room arrived. Willot, the manager, decided (wrongly or rightly?) to transfer their belongings to one of the rooms of the group. When they arrived in the evening, they discovered the situation, made a lot of noise, went to the police, called in the tourism people, made threats to destroy Coron Village Lodge and Coron tourism. The SB on tourism appeased them and gave them dinner, which they accepted, at a certain resort. Willot apologized and offered to give the four rooms for free, which they accepted. He even offered to return the p2,000 deposit they made but got this retort: “Hindi na, inyo na iyan!” as though the p2,000 was an alm we did not deserve.

    Yes, Willot uttered “ I don’t care!” That was when a lot of threats were made and Willot got exasperated.

    That evening, they went for dinner to a restaurant, where they supposedly made a lot of noise and complained loudly about the food and the service. Also they had a drinking spree at the lodge and were loud and rowdy, we had to request them to tone down.

    On the day they left, they just left, no thanks, no goodbye. They got free lodging. Sana kung sisirain nila kami sa blogs, di na sila nagpalibre. Our only “fault” (ours or theirs?) was transferring their things from Rm14, we apologized, they got free dinner from our tourism office, they got free lodgings. I am amazed at the big effort to destroy us in return for a perceived “discourtesy” To say their stay with us was a nightmare, isn’t that an exaggeration? No place in Coron is that terrible!

    Jenny, whoever you are ( I don’t know if I met you) please tone down the anger. The peace of the Lord be with you and your group. We are not that bad.

    Mr. Marketman, thank you so much for your beautiful blog which has done a lot for us. Do come to Coron again, a lot of improvements have been done on the lodge. Our guests love our lodge, except for this one group. Is it possible they just wanted freebies? They got it!

    And to all who gave us good blogs, thank you so much. Every time I read one, I raise my face to God and thank Him profusely. God bless you all!

  98. Ms. Fernandez, thank you for that explanation and response to recent comments from three commenters, Jenny, che and elizabeth. As I cautioned earlier, one had to have a clear picture of the situation, and now we have a view from both sides. As I also mentioned earlier, to me the critical issue was whether the room was to be vacated and you’re explanation does make sense about rooms near each other and possible transfers, though I must agree that moving items was perhaps not the best thing to do. However, what is interesting here is that the group left out the fact that they ACCEPTED a freebie of four room nights which they very conveniently forgot to mention in their comments above, and in several that I deleted for being disparaging and unhelpful. What kind of integrity do Jenny, Che and Elizabeth have to complain so vociferously AFTER THE INCIDENT yet having agreed to accept partial compensation in the form of a freebie? I believe there were reasons to get upset, but personally, I am more IMPRESSED with your stated response than I have been in similar service situations in several locations in the Philippines. Thank you for that clarification and I wish you and your hotel well. As for the commenters, Jenny, Elizabeth and Che, you just lost nearly every ounce of credibility in my view by narrating what was possibly only half of the story. Further comments from this group will be moderated at my discretion. And my instincts seemed turned on, as I mentioned earlier, if the hotel were mine, I would have asked che to leave based only on the comments she has posted here. Oh, and ladies and readers of this blog, I HAVE NEVER ACCEPTED A FREE ROOM from this hotel and I am not paid to do these reviews and I AM NOT IN ANY WAY RELATED to the owners.

  99. Dear Mr. Marketman,

    Thank you for your kind understanding re the disparaging blogs placed by the “Jenny” group in your site. Re the free rooms, it was not for one night. It was 2 rooms for 3 nites + 2 rooms for 2 nights + 2 two-room apartelles for one night!

    Re the airport van incident, as we always do, we arrange for the van ride of all our guests, the airport being quite far, and our guests requesting or expecting us to do this for them. So we requested two vans to pick up this “Jenny” or “missiso” group, wrongly thinking they are like our other guests who thank us for the service. We do not make a centavo from the van ride, it is just a service, especially for the first-timers who have some apprehensions about how to get to town. And they are not our vans! When Willot told them there are vans waiting for them, they got angry, bakit daw sila pinakikialaman? They got daw a van for very cheap, lower than the rate the van drivers association charge regularly, and thus even caused a big quarrel among the van drivers. But that is another story. The point is we were trying to help as part of our service, we were placed pa in bad light. Truly, truly, we don;t make a centavo out of the van rides, any driver would attest to that. Service lang talaga.

    SO sorry, Mr. Marketman, that your site has been used for an ugly controversy. Sorry for the big bother. And thank you for your fair comments.

    To all readers: Mr. Marketman was a guest I met just once at our lodge. May be he liked our lodge, so he placed us on his site. He is in no way related to us and in no way got freebies from us. He was just a regular guest, and I thank him very much for the beautiful blog he wrote about us.

  100. First of all…..please do not judge us and we are not asking you to take our side….or whoever side you want…we just want to let you know and other people what we have experienced in village lodge….I just want to comment that it is very judgemental on our part that ” we just want freebies”….my group may have reacted that way but is it not because you yourself as a customer will really feel bad if you are expecting good treatment especially if you have long planned your vacation….we did not ask for a freebie…they even offered a free dinner….if we are just asking for a freebie then we would have accepted “just” the dinner….and for ms. Bec Fernandez…i think posting your comment about us is not good also because you are not there to tell those stories….we just want to let you know how your people handles this kind of situations….actually they represents you….we do not intend to destroy village lodge…what we want is you not to do those things to other people…treat guests right….in any case “the customer is always right”….you just gave yourself away on how you handle people by posting your comments about your guests.

  101. che & company, several of your follow up emails are tedious and don’t provide further clarification. I called che a liar simply because she stated I was related to the owners, which I am not. That assertion is therefore a lie. Che/others in the group followed up with suggestions that I only post good reviews, which I most certainly do not, see links here, so Che was again, lying. Which reduces her and ultimately, your group’s credibility. Period.

    Cebu Pacific (Airline)
    Ayala Land (Real Estate)
    Sitio Remedios (Ilocos Hotel)
    Chili’s (Restaurant)

    So if anyone is appearing less than completely truthful, it is you guys. If I receive one more dumb comment, I will simply delete all of your earlier ones as it does not seem that you understand just how dumb you are making your experience sound. I complain a lot myself, but I only publish situations where I am backed up by the facts. And often, after sending the subject of complaint a letter with my views and often hearing back from them. Give it up. You had, what was in your opinion a bad stay, you accepted several room nights on a complimentary basis after the incident, which you failed to volunteer in your earlier comments, so you left out a significant fact from the story, reducing your credibility. When this significant factual omission was pointed out by the hotel owner, you acknowledge it. It’s one thing to complain when you can fully substantiate it. Read some of the links first and maybe you will learn some tips on how to complain properly. In not a SINGLE ONE of those linked cases did the companies come back and point out that my facts were inaccurate. Your narration of the events apparently were neither complete nor totally accurate. There is a big difference and if you can’t understand that it isn’t worth my time to make it any clearer to all of you. Good riddance.

  102. After reading everything about Coron Village Lodge in this site, I now have this feeling of confidence and happiness with my choice. You see, these past couple of days, I’ve been scrambling to find a nice place to stay in Coron but to no avail, resorts/hotels were already fully booked.

    This noon, I was just able to booked myself and my boyfriend to a 4D/3N stay for the holidays on June 12-15. I highly appreciated Ms. Bec’s tips on how to get the best out of Coron without having to spend much. I’m really looking forward to everything since this will be my first time in Palawan.

  103. i need suggestions… we will be staying at the village lodge. my problem is.. me and my husband will be on morning flight.. but our outher companion will be flying on pm flight i think they will arrive at 2pm. so its late na.. san pa ba kme pwede pumunta para d masayang yung first day. any white beach resort nearest the village lodge? thanks! need help!

  104. for joysy,
    Probably you can explore the town, the market, the church and souvenir shops, before you know it it’s already 2pm.
    We arrived at 9 in the morning, settle our things, then went to souvenir shops (you can walk if you like or go by tricycle for 8 pesos only/head) then, went to market explored it then bought some fish and vegetables, found JACKIE’S VIDEOKE N RESTAURANT(like DAMPA)that cooks the things we bought, which by the way, is very cost effective. As soon as you know it, your friends are already there….hope it helps!

  105. Dear MM,
    is there any possibility that i can put pictures and comments on my remarkable experince in Coron Village Lodge?

  106. Hi sir MM, good day! I have been checking out your blog on Coron. And I may say that your blog has been a big help to us who have no idea about how great the place is. I will be going to Coron this month with my group, from the 26th til the 28th and have already contacted Ma’m Bec about our plan to stay at the Village Lodge. We are 10. I was surprised to read about the unfortunate event that happened to some of the guests at the lodge. Too bad. But it can happen anywhere so let’s just say that we can never please everybody and at least lessons were learned. I am confident that my group and I will have a great experience in Coron. We are so excited. We’re only praying that there’ll be no upcoming storm on those dates. I also have been scouting and browsing on the internet for contacts since my group have decided to have a DIY tour in Coron. We are a conservative group but we’re willing to go adventurous in Coron. I have tried contacting Sir Emie for the boat ride, but his wife told me he’s not around so I’ll just try later so I could talk to him about a good deal for our tour. We are so excited! And may I also have this opportunity to congratulate you Mr. Marketman for your very helpful and informative blogsite. And thanks to Ma’m Bec who have been very nice to answer all our queries about the accommodation and Coron. I will definitely come back to post comments about our experience in Coron once we have our tour there. Thanks again and best regards!

  107. Sol, is Emie is busy try another bangkero we used Tio Fredo 09196465685. He is based in Culion but if you arrange a day outing with him, he can pick you up in Coron. Have a great trip!

  108. I just got back from my Coron trip yesterday… and I have to say that everything went great. The Coron Village Lodge truly provided us with the simple and homey atmosphere. The staff are courteous and willing to help you with anything. Breakfast meals always come with a few pieces of DELICIOUS danggit, served with a smile.

    I highly recommend this place… it’s only a few minutes walk to the market, stores and other restaurants. I’d also like to promote our very friendly boatman James. You may contact him on this number – 09187033010. He’s very nice – always there to assist you on your trip to the islands and provide you with valuable information. It’s a joy to watch him dive the shipwrecks and point at the good spots to take pictures.

    I’d like to thank Ms. Bec for the pieces of advice on how to get the best out of Coron without having to spend much. I’ll definitely go back.

  109. were about to leave manila on friday at 3;45 pm super ferry for a vacation in coron, how much is recent rate of the standard room? i have my second thoughts not to pushthrough, were just 2, it sounds expensive especially hiring a banca,pls someone help HOW POOR OF US…HUHUHU if we cannot really afford, how about puerto princesa? can anyone help us?

  110. honestly our budget is just approximately p5,000 pls.help us if anyone knows hiring a cheap banca pls. we beg you..we really want to go coron…god bless

  111. hi desperate jack! We were also just 2 when we went to Coron. Our room costs P950/night (twin, airconditioned, hot and cold shower). The cost of the bangka really depends on your destination. Coron Island Tour (siete pecados, cayangan lake, twin lagoon, banol beach, shipwreck, barracuda lake)– costs P1,500. For Calumbuyan Island, Coral Garden, Lusong Wreck, Gunboat — since they are quite far, costs P2,800. You could refer to my previous comment for the number of our boatman/tourguide, James. He’s really nice.

  112. Hope my comment is just in time. Have a safe trip! And if you’re going for the Coron Island Tour, don’t forget to bring bread — there a lots of hungry fish waiting to be fed.

  113. hi!i wanna be of help to anybody who wants to enjoy coron-culion palawan,one of the best kept secret of palawan.believe it or not you can enjoy coron-culion palawan’s sun,sand and scenic views without spending too much and getting what’s your money worth, for those who wants to experience palawan,you can email me at marvinsablada@yahoo.com .

  115. Hi! My husband and I took off for 4d/3n and stayed at the Coron Village Lodge. Your initial post was a big factor in helping me decide on our accommodations and, if I may say so, we were not disappointed. (My daughter had gone to Coron earlier in June with her friends and I had encouraged them to stay at Village Lodge. They, too, enjoyed their stay and were happy and at home with the place. Wilot even went the distance, and served as their “guide” in their island hopping trip to the farther islands)
    The accommodations were simple yet comfortable and clean, and the food was delectable. The staff was most helpful and courteous. During the first two days, my husband and i just walked around town due to prevailing bad weather. We discovered the public market on the 2nd day and bought ourselves a kilo of crabs (P180) which we handed over to the Lodge’s staff for cooking. They prepared “chili crabs” (P150 cooking charge) and we had the most satisfying dinner…It was so tasty! In fact we enjoyed it so much, we did the same thing for dinner the following day!
    I read in one of your earlier posts about not being able to think of desserts, well, i tried the buco pandan at the lodge and it was good – confusing though it may be ’cause it was color red :). We also liked going to the nearby convenience store (about 12 meters down the road)to buy ice cream.
    The weather was not so great when we were there (it was mostly gray and overcast with some rainshowers), but the charm and peacefulness of the entire place more than made up for it. We did enjoy a trip to Maquinit hotsprings and when the weather cleared, we went to Cayangan Lake, Banol Beach and the Twin Lagoon. Not too many stops, yes, but swimming at the lake and lagoon was just too enchanting – we couldn’t get enough of it! We really took our sweet time at these places. Lunch was at Banol Beach – husband went to market early, purchased some fresh catch and our boatmen cooked them for us while we enjoyed the beach.
    Our boatman was ricky. His wife, luvy (09282529862) arranges bookings for their boats (they have 3).
    Some of our coron photos may be viewed at grillman.multiply.com

  116. hi ! market man, i just wanna ask if you’ve to culion(40 min banca ride from coron) palawan,if not, i suggest you try to visit sometime,it’s such a historical and beautiful place to visit!if ever,just contact me and i ‘m sure i can be of big help to you!!

  117. Hi everyone,

    Is anybody here can post how much the rate for Coron Island Tour (siete pecados, cayangan lake, twin lagoon, banol beach, shipwreck, barracuda lake)& For Calumbuyan Island, Coral Garden, Lusong Wreck, Gunboat. As prior to Rachelle blog it costs 1500 for coron island tour and 2800 for Calumbuyan Island, Coral Garden, Lusong Wreck, Gunboat. What about Banana Island or Malcapuya Island? as well as Calauit Safari? can you give me the rate as well? we are going to coron this coming october and we are planning to get the hotel from village lodge and rent a boat o banca to make our budget less. Thanks

  118. hello grace,i think its 3500 for malcapuya island and banana island(banca rent),actually banca rent will depend on the numbers of pasenger,the more, the bigger boat you need, of course the higher the rent.but if you really in a tight budget contact len dela cruz 09209253115,she can help customize your tour according to your preferences and budget.we’re party of ten and it only cost us 3500/head for 3D 2N inclusive of,accomodation(aircon rooms),full meals,banca for our 2 days island hopping(coron island tour and malcapuya island,banana,ditaytayan and cheron islands.and a tourist guide,and also the entrance fees.

  119. thank you ate edna for the info’s ill consider the scope of your tour for ill just stay there for 4 days thanks for the great help.

    Irene

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